The economic crimes division of the State Attorney’s Office filed an indictment
on Thursday with the Tel Aviv District Court against Ramat Gan Mayor Zvi
Bar.
The indictment charged him with accepting $224,125 in bribes, as
well as with fraud, money-laundering, obstruction of justice and breach of
public trust.
Three entrepreneurs who allegedly gave Bar bribes were also
indicted for bribery, money-laundering and obstruction of justice.
The
bribes were allegedly given nominally as loans in exchange for Bar’s help with
the Beit Liror development project in Ramat Gan.
State Attorney Moshe
Lador was personally involved in the decision to indict Bar, following a
pre-indictment hearing in which the Ramat Gan mayor had a chance to sway Lador
against the indictment.
Suspects sometimes do succeed in swaying the
state in such pre-indictment hearings, such as when Yisrael Beytenu Party leader
Avigdor Liberman convinced the state to drop a multimillion-dollar
money-laundering case against him.
However, Bar was not as successful.
|